A Pair to Watch: Oikos versus Chobani

Super Bowl Advertising has an inherent competitive aspect to it. Many brands do not want to be known simply for having a Super Bowl spot, they want to be know for having THE Super Bowl spot. However, beyond winning it all; as someone who loves advertising, it becomes even more interesting when you have competitive brands in the set. This year we get to see one such matchup with the announced appearance of both Oikos and Chobani.

Both brands participate in the Greek yogurt category, which has taken on a lot of interest by consumers. Chobani entered as a massive leader in the category, but Dannon entered and grew their Oikos brand at an impressive rate. From such a perspective, how each brand does in the Super Bowl could have important financial implications.

Chobani is a Super Bowl rookie this year, so we will be treated with their debut performance on the big stage. Oikos, is not a stranger to the Super Bowl, they appeared in the 2012 Super Bowl with a spot featuring John Stamos.

In that initial outing the Oikos spot made its point loud and clear. And, that spot led Dannon to become one of only four brands to be awarded an A that year by our Kellogg Super Bowl Advertising Review Panel. Oikos sat out in 2013, but given their 2012 performance, I’m excited to see what they are bringing this year!

Competition is not necessarily bad for the brands. In fact, in the Super Bowl environment a competitive match-up may actually inspire greater consumer attention. As humans we have a natural tendency to engage in comparisons and to rank-order people. Brands are no exceptions. This means both brands may get a bit more buzz and discussion simply because they are both present—this blog post represents one such demonstration. The question here will be whether Oikos’ past experience in the Super Bowl is a formula they can repeat or whether the rookie Chobani will dazzle and delight us with a new angle. It certainly is a match-up I’m looking forward to, and I encourage you to add it to your own Super Bowl program!